DRINKING WATER
Why Multi‑Commodity Utilities Need Smart Meter Data Management
Breaking down data silos allows multi-commodity utilities to improve operational efficiency and infrastructure visibility. By managing water and electric data on a shared platform, providers can detect leaks faster and support long-term conservation goals.
DRINKING WATER CASE STUDIES AND WHITE PAPERS
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![GettyImages-845088016]( "Water Sustainability: Encouraging And Enabling Change With Measurement")
Water Sustainability: Encouraging And Enabling Change With MeasurementLearn how the water industry can encourage sustainable use of this precious resource.
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![alaska]( "Case Study: Groundwater DWTP (AK) - DEXSORB Full-Scale")
Case Study: Groundwater DWTP (AK) - DEXSORB Full-ScaleA DWTP client in Alaska detected elevated PFAS contamination levels in two groundwater wells supplying drinking water to 85 service connections. PFAS concentrations are provided in Table 1, where combined concentration of EPA PFAS6 was detected at 490 to 810 ppt.
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![Completed Installation of the 3-in-1 Hydro-Guard Solution for water quality sampling flushing and remote pressure monitoring_.jpg]( "Durham, NC Improves Water Quality With Remote Pressure Monitoring, Sampling, And Flushing Stations")
Durham, NC Improves Water Quality With Remote Pressure Monitoring, Sampling, And Flushing StationsThe City of Durham is committed to providing safe drinking water to a service population of more than 289,000. The City’s Department of Water Management (DWM) ensures the delivery of water to approximately 99,000 service connections through 1,400 miles of watermains. Lake Michie and Little River Reservoir are the two sources that deliver raw water to the City’s two treatment plants, using a combination of gravity flow and electric and hydro-powered pumping systems. Together, these plants have the combined treatment capacity of 64 million gallons per day (MGD) with an average demand is 28 MGD.
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City Of Springfield, MO, Upgrades Disinfection System From Gas Chlorine To On‐Site Sodium Hypochlorite Generation
In April 2013, City Utilities started up three Microclor Model MC‐1500 skid systems, each rated at 1,500 pounds per day of free available chlorine.
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![insertion-valve]( "Insertion Valves Eliminate System Shutdown")
Insertion Valves Eliminate System ShutdownWinchester Municipal Utilities (WMU) faced challenges regarding two separate sections of town. The lines required maintenance due to old inoperable inline valves that needed to be replaced. The challenge - replacing these valves using a procedure that eliminated the shutdown of the water lines that service hundreds of homes and businesses.
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![image (3)]( "The Enduring Value Of Ultrasonic Level Measurement In Water And Wastewater Level Applications")
The Enduring Value Of Ultrasonic Level Measurement In Water And Wastewater Level ApplicationsDiscover how using ultrasonic technology allows level and pump controllers to progress in ways that enhance both accuracy and usability — rather than remaining static.
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![oregon-city-RF-network]( "Oregon City Finds Improved Customer Service With The Aclara RF Network")
Oregon City Finds Improved Customer Service With The Aclara RF NetworkRedmond’s water utility previously relied on contracted meter readers to manually report water meter data once a month. Using this outdated monthly system, the city was obtaining inconsistent information that did not allow the utility to effectively answer customer questions.
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![aquaflex]( "Safety, Savings, Synergy: The Aquana-Itron Partnership Reshaping Utilities")
Safety, Savings, Synergy: The Aquana-Itron Partnership Reshaping UtilitiesIn the ever-evolving realm of smart water solutions, Aquana's AquaFlex™ Actuator Valve (AVS) emerges as a transformative force, promising heightened operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness for water utilities. This American-designed and manufactured remote water shutoff valve, seamlessly integrated into Itron’s AMI network, is poised to reshape the landscape of utility operations.
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50+ Years With Neptune And Building On A Decade of R900 Technology
The Public Works Utilities of Billings, Montana, began their partnership with Neptune Technology back in the 1950s and was an early adopter of Neptune’s ARB® absolute encoder meter reading technology in the 1960s.
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![article_Treating_for_PFAS_2022-1]( "Treating For PFAS: Current Technology And Upcoming Innovations")
Treating For PFAS: Current Technology And Upcoming InnovationsLearn about what’s available and what’s coming in the safe and permanent destruction of PFAS.
DRINKING WATER APPLICATION NOTES
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UV Technology Offers Solution For Emerging Water Crisis2/19/2014
Many are turning to UV as an effective barrier to enable the reuse of wastewater, for indirect reuse, and aquifer recharge.
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Reduce Or Eliminate Water Hammer With Valve Positioners5/19/2022
Water hammer, which can occur in just about any pumping system and even steam systems, can lead to pipe breakage, equipment damage or even total system failure. Addressing water hammer at the source is the savviest and most cost-effective way to handle the issue.
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The Basics: Keeping Our Water Clean Requires Monitoring4/30/2014
Keeping the water in our lakes, rivers, and streams clean requires monitoring of water quality at many points as it gradually makes its way from its source to our oceans. Over the years ever increasing environmental concerns and regulations have heightened the need for increased diligence and tighter restrictions on wastewater quality.
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Application Note: Busseron Creek Watershed Partnership Addresses Concerns In A Rural Watershed1/20/2010As with other watershed organizations, the Busseron Creek Watershed Partnership (BCWP) exists because of surface water quality degradation. In this case, those waters drain 163,231 acres of a watershed that crosses the boundaries of Vigo, Clay, Green, and Sullivan counties in West- Central Indiana. By YSI
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SensyMaster Thermal Mass Flowmeter8/3/2021
SensyMaster helps to improve the operating costs of the most cost intensive process in sewage plants: Aeration. High-measuring performance and state of the art technology helps customers increase plant efficiency.
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Application Note: YSI Water Quality Monitoring Buoys Help Connecticut DOT Protect The Housatonic River12/27/2005When replacement of the Sikorski Bridge spanning the Housatonic River was authorized, Paul Corrente and the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CT-DOT) set about the design and development of a water quality monitoring program to monitor the contractor’s in-water activities to insure full protection of the river from perturbation
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Reducing And Reusing Water In Steel Manufacturing2/28/2022
The art of manufacturing steel for industries is well over 100 years old. Within this time, the steel business has fulfilled consumer needs, including construction, transportation, and manufacturing. The steel manufacturing process is quite intensive as it requires a lot of water to cool down the application. Steel plants constantly look for strategies that can help sustain the steel for a longer time by efficiently improving water and energy consumption.
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Alcoholic Beverage Fusel Alcohol Testing With Static Headspace9/2/2014
A static headspace method was developed using Teledyne Tekmar automated headspace vial samplers to meet the method requirements of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the US Department of the Treasury (TTB) method SSD: TM:2001 for testing fusel alcohols in alcoholic beverages.
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MEGA-STOP Bell Protection System Aids In Pipe Joint Assembly4/13/2021
Water and wastewater piping come in a variety of materials, joints, and diameters. They can meet a multitude of demands and needs for the country's infrastructure.
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Removal Of PFCs With Activated Carbon12/30/2013
In recent years, various perflorinated chemicals (PFCs) have come under increasing scrutiny due to their presence in the environment, in animals, and in human blood samples. There are two major classes of PFCs: perfluoroalkyl sulfonates such as perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and long chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylates such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA).
DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS
The development of the PTV Series considered every aspect of process turbidity workflow - from installation and setup; daily measurement and control; routine procedures such as calibration, verification and maintenance; to data collection and management.
The Pulsa Series hydraulic diaphragm metering pumps was the foundation upon which Pulsafeeder was built. For over 70 years Pulsa Series hydraulic pumps have been synonymous with dependability, quality and precision engineering, and are still depended upon to provide years, even decades, of year round operation. Available with a variety of diaphragm styles to deliver everything from thin fluids to lime slurries, materials of construction for contact with the most hazardous chemicals and features and options to provide safe, remote and accurate dosing, count on Pulsa Series for the most demanding applications.
The Proline Promag W 800 electromagnetic flowmeter is a long-lasting battery-powered magmeter with secure system integration and communication.
The OPTIMASS 3400 is a cost-effective Coriolis mass flowmeter for accurate flow measurement of liquids and gases in a variety of demanding low flow and dosing applications (from 0.3 kg/h or 0.01 lb/min upwards). The OPTIMASS 3400 features Entrained Gas Management (EGMTM) for liquid applications, providing reliable readings even in the event of gas entrainment of up to 100%. In this way, the Coriolis meter enables continuous and uninterrupted measurement of volume flow and mass, density and temperature – even at very difficult process conditions with 2-phase flow.
Ranked among the industry’s most innovative solutions, the light and compact AVT EZ Valve is designed with a built-in isolation gate that allows the valve to be installed under pressure, a design feature that permits flow through the line while the repair is being made. It is durable, reliable, and certified to industry standards.
The flowIQ 2200 water meter has a state-of-the-art built-in leak detection that delivers uncompromising accuracy. Great for households, multi-unit buildings and industry.
LATEST INSIGHTS ON DRINKING WATER
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![pregnant_water-Getty-2207189112]( "Drinking Water Contaminated With 'Forever Chemicals' During Pregnancy Linked To An Increased Risk Of Childhood Asthma")
While most of us are routinely exposed to low levels of PFAS, some communities are exposed to far higher levels from nearby pollution sources. A new study shows that in one of these at-risk communities, children were more likely to develop asthma if their mothers were exposed to very high PFAS levels during pregnancy.
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![wastewater ecological damage-GettyImages-2231956262]( "The Pragmatic Shift In Source Water Protection: Moving From Symptom Management To Root-Cause Accountability")
A shift in how we approach source water protection is long overdue. Currently, we are trapped in a cycle of escalating costs, forced to treat symptoms like algae and invasive weeds expediently with chemicals while the underlying risk in the reservoir compounds. True risk management requires breaking this cycle. -
![River water pollution, Ecological-GettyImages-1215336784]( "The AWWA Said $2.4 Trillion. It Missed The Compound Interest.")
Einstein once said of compound interest, "He who understands it, earns it. He who doesn't, pays it." The same logic of compounding applies to the organic sediment accumulating on the floor of your drinking water reservoir. The longer you wait to address it, the more exponentially expensive it becomes to fix. -
![snowystream-Getty-521971897]( "Winter's Alarmingly Low Snowpack Offers A Glimpse Of The Changing Rhythm Of Water In The Western U.S.")
The April 1 snowpack measurement has long been the single most important number in western water management, considered a strong proxy for how much water the mountains are holding in reserve. But in 2026, that savings account has been woefully deficient. -
![ColoradoRiverDam_Getty-1280300802]( "Why Colorado River Negotiations Stalled, And How They Could Resume With The Possibility Of Agreement")
Why Colorado River Negotiations Stalled, And How They Could Resume With The Possibility Of AgreementThe five most common sources of conflict between people are values, data, relationships, interests, and structure. The current Colorado River negotiations include all five. -
![Water droplets, PFAS, Forever chemical water contamination-GettyImages-2173433890]( "Designing Resilient PFAS Treatment Strategies For Water Agencies")
Water agencies across the U.S. are facing a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that poses a conundrum: Should they take a cautious or aggressive approach to treating PFAS contamination in their water system?
DRINKING WATER VIDEOS
How researchers at UC Merced are developing a better understanding of the three sources of water upon which California depends in order to adapt to the effects of environmental changes and make better use of this most precious of our natural resources.
ABOUT DRINKING WATER
In most developed countries, drinking water is regulated to ensure that it meets drinking water quality standards. In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers these standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).
Drinking water considerations can be divided into three core areas of concern:
- Source water for a community’s drinking water supply
- Drinking water treatment of source water
- Distribution of treated drinking water to consumers
Drinking Water Sources
Source water access is imperative to human survival. Sources may include groundwater from aquifers, surface water from rivers and streams and seawater through a desalination process. Direct or indirect water reuse is also growing in popularity in communities with limited access to sources of traditional surface or groundwater.
Source water scarcity is a growing concern as populations grow and move to warmer, less aqueous climates; climatic changes take place and industrial and agricultural processes compete with the public’s need for water. The scarcity of water supply and water conservation are major focuses of the American Water Works Association.
Drinking Water Treatment
Drinking Water Treatment involves the removal of pathogens and other contaminants from source water in order to make it safe for humans to consume. Treatment of public drinking water is mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. Common examples of contaminants that need to be treated and removed from water before it is considered potable are microorganisms, disinfectants, disinfection byproducts, inorganic chemicals, organic chemicals and radionuclides.
There are a variety of technologies and processes that can be used for contaminant removal and the removal of pathogens to decontaminate or treat water in a drinking water treatment plant before the clean water is pumped into the water distribution system for consumption.
The first stage in treating drinking water is often called pretreatment and involves screens to remove large debris and objects from the water supply. Aeration can also be used in the pretreatment phase. By mixing air and water, unwanted gases and minerals are removed and the water improves in color, taste and odor.
The second stage in the drinking water treatment process involves coagulation and flocculation. A coagulating agent is added to the water which causes suspended particles to stick together into clumps of material called floc. In sedimentation basins, the heavier floc separates from the water supply and sinks to form sludge, allowing the less turbid water to continue through the process.
During the filtration stage, smaller particles not removed by flocculation are removed from the treated water by running the water through a series of filters. Filter media can include sand, granulated carbon or manufactured membranes. Filtration using reverse osmosis membranes is a critical component of removing salt particles where desalination is being used to treat brackish water or seawater into drinking water.
Following filtration, the water is disinfected to kill or disable any microbes or viruses that could make the consumer sick. The most traditional disinfection method for treating drinking water uses chlorine or chloramines. However, new drinking water disinfection methods are constantly coming to market. Two disinfection methods that have been gaining traction use ozone and ultra-violet (UV) light to disinfect the water supply.
Drinking Water Distribution
Drinking water distribution involves the management of flow of the treated water to the consumer. By some estimates, up to 30% of treated water fails to reach the consumer. This water, often called non-revenue water, escapes from the distribution system through leaks in pipelines and joints, and in extreme cases through water main breaks.
A public water authority manages drinking water distribution through a network of pipes, pumps and valves and monitors that flow using flow, level and pressure measurement sensors and equipment.
Water meters and metering systems such as automatic meter reading (AMR) and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) allows a water utility to assess a consumer’s water use and charge them for the correct amount of water they have consumed.